Alvaro Morata blames his poor recent Chelsea FC form on his struggles with a back injury

Alvaro Morata has blamed his poor recent form for Chelsea FC on his back injury.

The Spanish striker made a strong start to his Blues career after having signed for the west London side from Real Madrid in the summer transfer window last year.

However, his form tailed off later in the season after he suffered a back problem which ruled him out for a number of weeks.

Morata then struggled in front of goal for the west London side and recently only scored his first two goals of the year.

The 25-year-old’s impact has been largely disappointing in a frustrating season for the Blues, with the west London side currently in fifth place in the Premier League and looking as if they will miss out on Champions League qualification.

And the Spaniard has now spoken out about his frustrating start to life at Chelsea FC in recent weeks.

Morata is quoted as saying by Metro: “Everything was good until I had the problems with my back.

“I played with a lot of pain and it probably would have been better if I’d stopped.

“But I wanted to play with my team-mates, for the club and the fans. Now it’s in the past.”

Chelsea FC return to Premier League action when they travel to Southampton in the top flight on Saturday lunchtime.

The Blues, who face Southampton in the FA Cup semi-finals later this month, are currently fifth and 10 points behind fourth-placed Tottenham with just six games left this season.